A damning United Nations report has revealed that South Sudanese government officials have embezzled billions of dollars in oil revenues since the country gained independence in 2011, deepening poverty and fueling ongoing conflict in one of the world’s poorest nations.
According to the report by the UN Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan, government elites siphoned off a significant portion of the country’s $25.2 billion in oil income, while basic services like healthcare, education, and food security remain catastrophically underfunded.
“Our report tells the story of the plundering of a nation,” said Yasmin Sooka, chair of the commission.
“It is driving hunger, collapsing health systems and causing preventable deaths, as well as fuelling deadly armed conflict over resources.”
$1.7 Billion Missing from ‘Oil for Roads’ Scheme
The report highlights rampant corruption in the government’s “Oil for Roads” infrastructure program — touted as a major development initiative — where $1.7 billion out of $2.2 billion allocated between 2021 and 2024 is unaccounted for.
According to investigators, roads were left incomplete, built well below standard, or were massively overpriced, with the diverted funds funneled through construction companies linked to Vice President Benjamin Bol Mel.
Bol Mel, a powerful political figure recently promoted to general in South Sudan’s National Security Service, is now seen as a potential successor to President Salva Kiir, raising alarms over the country’s political future.
The report accuses the South Sudanese government of “systemic corruption and brazen predation”, noting that the stolen funds have direct consequences, including malnutrition, preventable child and maternal deaths, mass exclusion from education and escalating armed conflict over resources
“These diversions are not abstract budget failures—they translate into real, human suffering,” said Carlos Castresana Fernandez, a member of the rights commission.
“South Sudan’s international partners must make clear that this situation is unacceptable.”
In a lengthy rebuttal included in the report, the South Sudanese government accused the UN commission of relying on “unverified information” sourced from journalists, NGOs, and UN agencies.
The report’s release coincides with intensifying political tensions, as a fragile power-sharing deal between President Salva Kiir and his longtime rival, Riek Machar, appears to be unraveling.
Just last week, Machar was charged with treason and crimes against humanity following an ethnic militia attack on a military base in March — a move his supporters call politically motivated. In response, Machar loyalists on Monday issued a call for armed mobilization to pursue what they called “regime change”.
